Last week we had religion-words. This week, just for grins, we'll look at a subset of religion-words: those that somehow involve monks. Starting with the obvious one.

monkish – inclined to disciplinary self-denial

. . . "Forget it, lad, and get out into the big world. The rich tapestry of life is waiting for you out there. I've been watching you – working all hours and when you're not working you're reading up on cases in you text books – and I tell you the dedicated vet thing is all right up to a point. But you've got to live a little. Think of all the lovely lasses in Darrowby – you can hardly move for them. And every one just waiting for a big handsome chap like you to gallop up on his white horse. Don't disappoint them." He leaned over and slapped my knee. "Tell you what. Why don't you let me fix something up? A nice little foursome -- just what you need.". . ."Ach, I don't know. I'm not keen really." . . ."Nonsense!" Tristan said. "I don't know why I haven't thought of it before. This monkish existence is bad for you. Leave all the details to me." – James Herriot, All Creatures Great and Small

July 11, 2007, 16:35

wordcrafter

Today's familiar word illustrates how a word can develop a sense far from its original meaning.

A certain order of friars, who wore a cloak with a pointed capuche, or hood, was named after the Italian word of 'hood' (cappuccio,). English using the French version of that name, calls them the Capuchin friars.

Whoever named this order could not have foreseen the friars' name would become a monkey! The capuchinmonkey was so named because it looks somewhat as if it were wearing the hood of a friar's habit.

Nor could he have imagined that the friars would become a drink, so named because it has the light-brown color of the Capuchin friars' habit. (Again, the habit. The order's name seems to be 'habit-forming'. [groan]) The drink's name is the Italian name for that order of friars, tracing back to the original 'hood'.

lubber – a big, clumsy, stupid fellow; esp. a lazy one; a lout (abbey-lubber was once a common term of reproach for a lazy monk.)

He looked forward to the boys growing up soon; he was going to put them through the mill just as his own father had done with him when he was a boy; they were going to learn how to take hold and run the place right. He wasn't going to overdo it; but those two boys were going to earn their salt, or he'd know why! Great big lubbers sitting around whittling! Mr. Thompson sometimes grew quite enraged with them, when imagining their possible future, big lubbers sitting around whittling or thinking about fishing trips. Well, he'd put a stop to that, mighty damn quick. – Katherine Anne Porter, Noon Wine

July 13, 2007, 02:53

BobHale

I'm wondering how that reconciles with landlubber, a poor or inexperienced sailor.

Why is this a monk word? Because it was invented, in 1972, at the Hungry Monk restaurant in Jevington, Sussex. Its creator, Ian Dowding, tells the story here. "The owner of this restaurant … joined up some of the syllables and came up with 'banoffi'. We thought it was incredibly silly."

It became very apparent that they were about as welcome as a banoffi pie at a Weight Watcher meeting.– Russ Kane and Sally Kane, Shout at the Moon

She had always regarded the color turquoise, like shocking pink and chartreuse , as the color equivalent of the word ain't: quaint when seldom used but vulgar in great doses.– E. L. Konigsburg, The View from Saturday

As Milo frantically conducted [the orchestra], all the flowers suddenly appeared black, the gray rocks became a lovely soft chartreuse , and even peacefully sleeping [dog] Tock changed from brown to a magnificent ultramarine. Nothing was the color it should have been, and yet, the more he tried to straighten things out, the worse they became.– Norton Juster, The Phantom Tollbooth

Expert because I'm quite good at it (he said, modestly) and Amateur because I do it for love, not for money.

The recipe for banoffi pie caught my eye. I read it carefully and decided to try it some time in the near future, so it's now on my List of Things To Do; but the part about boiling unopened cans of condensed milk startled me. I would expect the cans to explode.

I read the recipe again and thought the filling sounded a lot like Dulce de Leche, a very popular sauce in Argentina. So I sought a recipe ...... and found one. Notice that the recipe writer recommends punching holes in the cans' tops before boiling. Good idea !!

but the part about boiling unopened cans of condensed milk startled me. I would expect the cans to explode

Yes, that sounds like a Very Bad Idea.

July 15, 2007, 12:36

wordcrafter

Many quotes today, for we have two words, each probably from the surname Mulligan. The surname is a double diminutive of Gaelic/Old-Irish mael 'bald', and so means "the little bald (or shaven) one," probably referring to a monk. Hence our two ‘mulligan’ words are indirectly monk-words.

mulligan – a second chance to play a golf shot; a "do-over"

literal: As a golf teacher, Pop was demanding. … And he always began our literally thousands of rounds together with the same terse but merry challenge - "No gimmes. No mulligan. No bullshit. Let's play golf."– James Patterson and Peter de Jonge, Miracle on the 17th Green [etc.]

figurative: “Sandy was an all right person. … But he wasn't the right man for you. Never was. And as for Richard!". . ."Don't start," I warned. "I've admitted he was a huge mistake. I think I should get a . . . what's that word they use in golf? When you take a bad stroke and it doesn't count?". . ."A mulligan." . . ."Yeah. Richard was my mulligan."– Mary Kay Andrews, Savannah Breeze

mulligan stew or mulligan – a stew made with whatever's available (also fig: a mixture, jumble, hotchpotch) [hobo slang]

literal: I followed Johnny back into the kitchen. "Ever make a mulligan stew?" he asked. . . .I had to admit I hadn't. "What do you put in them?" . . ."Everything … ." … Everything in one pot. … I watched enthralled as caribou, grouse, pork, rice, potatoes, corn, canned tomatoes, macaroni and celery followed each other into the pot. Johnny laughed. . . ."The more the better. Everything flavors everything else in a real mulligan." Johnny stopped talking to stir. Soon the smell of it was in the air, and the look on Johnny's face was one of reverence. – Benedict Freedman and Nancy Freedman, Mrs. Mike

figurative: Every two weeks the children had to report on a book they had read outside class. Marva [the teacher] was accumulating a stockpile of books, some donated and some purchased at charity book fairs or used bookstores. The inventory was a literary mulligan stew, classical authors mixed in with writers of popular children's fiction. E. M. Forster, Somerset Maughm, and William Faulkner shared the shelves with Judy Blume, Roald Dahl, and Shel Silverstein. – Marva Collins, Marva Collins' Way: Updated

I was accustomed to a broth of history from my father and Koussaint Rennie, some single topic at a time, but Stanley's version was a brimming mulligan stew.– Ivan Doig, English Creek

July 16, 2007, 11:01

wordcrafter

A dervish is a Muslim friar who has taken vows of poverty. One order is called the whirling dervishes, after their ritual of wild, frenzied dancing. The dictionaries give no further meaning for ‘whirling dervish’, but in actual usage the term is also used figuratively, as below.

whirling dervish – one in constant frenzied activity

... sharing, taking turns, being gentle and being truthful ... few if any of these traits can be fully understood, let alone embraced by the whirling dervish that is a toddler. – Vicki Iovine, The Girlfriends' Guide to Toddlers

Training an energetic dog is fun. … If you don’t put the time into training your dog to have better overall manners, you will live with a whirling dervish that never learns to simply hang out with people.– Gerilyn J. Bielakiewicz, et al., The Everything Dog Training and Tricks Book

Grandma … turns on Grandpa. Get out of it. Out. If you stay a minute longer I’ll take a hatchet to you, you drunken lunatic. By Jesus, I’ll swing at the end of a rope for you. Get out. She runs at him and he melts before this whirling dervish … He stumbles from the house, up the lane, and doesn’t stop till he reaches Melbourne in Australia– Frank McCourt, Angela's Ashes: A Memoir